The third in my series of these two fall perennials. The Autumn Joy Sedum has reached it’s deep rusty-rose color. The aster behind the sedum is the Purple Dome Aster. This fantastic purple is hard to beat for a wonderful fall perennial. The Miscanthus Flame Grass has opened up to produce fluffy cotton-like plumes. The foliage is starting to turn an orange color (the reason for its name – “Flame Grass). This winter I’ll try to post a picture of the way this grass looks with the snow and frost, etc.

Perennials can still be planted safely this fall. As with any plants that you plant in the fall, you need to do just an extra step. You need to provide a thick layer (3” or so) of a shredded mulch over the area where you plant and especially around the crown of the plant. Don’t use leaves only as if there is not enough snow, the winds will blow the leaves away and your plants will be exposed to the harsh winter winds. The best time to mulch is after the ground has received a couple of inches of frost. (Late November)

We just completed a fall planting at our meadow at home where we installed about 200 plants. The guys mulched these plants and we’ll report back in the spring on the results of our fall planting project!